Hotel La Isla — Hotel in Parrita

Our troop from Colorado stayed here as part of a trip planned by EF Tours. There were 42 people in our group (17 from our troop), mostly girls aged 13-18 and a handful of adults. The rooms are divided up into little cabins, which the girls thought were cute. Our scouts don't stay in hotels often, so to them the ideal was quite novel . ||||As with many places outside of the US, you get one room key and it is best to turn it in at the front desk when you are leaving the hotel grounds. This was a great experience for our girls as they locked their keys in their room by accident and we had them approach the front desk to resolve the issue themselves. Good problem solving and responsibility lessons!||||Another thing that was new for our US girls is not flushing toilet paper. This is very important in Costa Rica because the whole country is very environmentally aware and they try to save resources. ||||Some of the rooms we used have 2 double beds and a bathroom or 2 rooms with 2 sets of bunk beds in one room and two twin beds in the other room, and also a kitchenette with a large refrigerator, microwave, dishes, sink etc. Neither style room had super comfy furniture to sit and watch TV in, which is fine because the only English language channel was BBC News (and the scouts were not very interested in watching the news). There is a beach shower outside each room for sand management, and since there is no carpeting we had the girls leave their shoes outside so they wouldn't have a sandy floor. ||||The girls swam in the pool which was very clean. Other reviews perhaps prompted a clean up of the pool, but it was very nice and the girls loved it. The only bad part about the pool was the little black bugs that are like teenie tiny gnats. They pinch a bit, but don't leave a mark, and they could care less if you have mosquito repellant. ||||We loved the food! The staff was very nice and everyone loved the food. They have a great pool table and the bar area is very cozy. One of the favorite parts for the girls was a kitten that visited and a puppy that was owned by one of the staff. Personally I liked seeing the iguanas lounging about like bunnies from home. ||||We didn't get hot showers, and you have to use your own towels at the pool (take a microfiber towel so it will dry), and the beach is great for watching waves, birds and stars. ||||As part of our tour we worked on a mangrove project which was very nearby the hotel. It was an amazing project for the girls to work on and...

I stayed in this hotel in March 2017 hike on an EF trip we spent 3 nights. Overall on fist impress the hotel was simple and a bit run down, but over all fine. It was only later in the day of our arrivals that the girls in one room found ants in there bed, management was called and clean, then I found ants in my room on the floor, which wasn't too concerning as the girl I was sharing with had left some food open. We quickly cleaned up and then no more ants. Or so we thought. The same girls from before returned to their room covered in ants the beds and the bathroom, they were forced to move, to a room the still had ants but only a few on the floor. Back to my room I go to get ready for bed only to find a carpet of ants om the bathroom sink and shower. I was unfortunately unable to move rooms due to my roommates. As well the pool bottom was in more than one place broken concrete I got in once then never again. The jet pool was worse it was standing water. As well the pool area was filled with black bugs of some kind that gave everyone hives and rashes. Despite all of this the food was good and the staff was kind. Others on our trip who were staying in differ t parts of the hotel had no ants and no problems, so depending on what you want, this hotel is great for those who are just trying to get...

Yeat's end 2023 -- The good things i said on previous year did not apply this time during my latest visit with my wife's family. We made reservations for New Year's fiesta including dinner but this time was an absolute fiasco. We ordered in advance our meals for a large party (like 12 people) but the waiter was absolutely lost with our orders. My sister in law ordered chicken which never arrived and her daughter got fish that was served as chicken to her dismay. Another family member said that her meat was just like liking a bag of salt. Ordered drinks, and the young lady that was taking care of that completely forgot about these so had to order again. Waiter forgot to bring cutlery for some members of our family, by the time he got these the food was all cold. Meat was so-so for me, vegetables over cooked. Desert (cheesecake) was warm like it was done during late afternoon or early evening which we didn't liked at all. I don't know if this time they changed personnel and/or management but was a terrible experience.. Hope they take care of this if want to do better during summer season. I won't be back there at least until i can see some serious improvement in the quality of food and...